"The Department of Justice and the USDA share the strong conviction that a healthy, competitive agricultural sector is not only vitally important to our nation’s economy but also a matter of national security and public health," said Assistant Attorney General Varney.

A former CIA officer was arrested today on charges that he illegally disclosed national defense information and obstructed justice.

The Justice Department announced today that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against U.S. Park Police detectives involved in the fatal shooting of Trey Joyner.

The office manager of a Los Angeles durable medical equipment (DME) company pleaded guilty today to conspiring with her former church pastor to run a power wheelchair scheme that defrauded Medicare of more than $6 million, the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

John Bostick pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act’s asbestos work practice standards during the renovation of a 204-unit apartment building in Winnetka, Calif., in 2006.

A Las Vegas woman pleaded guilty today to falsely representing to Medicare that she owned a Los Angeles-area durable medical equipment (DME) company that was actually owned and operated by her brother, and used by her brother and others to submit more than $3.5 million in false claims to Medicare.

A federal court has issued a preliminary injunction barring Gwenn Wycoff and Frank Ozak, both of Los Angeles, from promoting so-called “common-law trusts” that help individuals evade taxes.

A Los Angeles woman has pleaded guilty to using fraudulent medical clinics and the stolen identities of physicians to defraud Medicare of more than $6.2 million.

Julius Everett “Bud” Johnson, of Richmond, Va., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Richmond for his role in an investment scheme resulting in millions of dollars in losses.

A Bulgarian national pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia for his role in laundering money for a transnational criminal group based in Eastern Europe.

A Los Angeles-area man pleaded guilty today to establishing fraudulent medical clinics and using stolen identities of physicians to defraud Medicare of up to $13.7 million.

Rogelio Hackett Jr., 26, of Lithonia, Ga., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga in Alexandria, Va., to trafficking in counterfeit credit cards and aggravated identity theft.

After a thorough investigation, the Antitrust Division determined that the proposed merger between Southwest Airlines and AirTran Airways is not likely to substantially lessen competition.

After a thorough review of the evidence, the Antitrust Division concluded that the facts did not support challenging the proposed transaction between Perdue and Coleman Natural Foods.

The Justice Department announced today that it will not pursue criminal charges against three Pittsburgh Bureau of Police officers in connection with the events of Jan. 12, 2010, involving former Pittsburgh School for the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) student Jordan Miles.

Lindsey Manufacturing Company, an Azusa, Calif., company, two of its executives and a Mexican intermediary today were convicted by a federal jury on all counts for their alleged roles in a scheme to pay bribes to Mexican government officials at the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), a state-owned utility company.

Under a settlement agreement lodged today in federal bankruptcy court in Delaware, Caribbean Petroleum Corp., Caribbean Petroleum Refining L.P., and Gulf Petroleum Refining Corp. – Puerto Rico will pay more than $8.2 million to address environmental liabilities relating to CAPECO’s former petroleum distribution facility in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, and more than 170 service stations owned or leased by CAPECO throughout Puerto Rico.

The Justice Department today announced settlements with two lenders under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) to resolve allegations that the lenders wrongfully foreclosed upon active duty servicemembers without first obtaining court orders, in violation of the SCRA.

A Romanian national pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia for leading a money laundering network for a transnational criminal group based in Eastern Europe.

Eight California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty for their roles in two separate conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

Julius Everett “Bud” Johnson, 62, a resident of Richmond, Va., was sentenced today to 97 months in prison for his role in an investment scheme resulting in millions of dollars in losses.

Rogelio Hackett Jr., 25, of Lithonia, Ga., was sentenced today to 120 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga in Alexandria, Va., for trafficking in counterfeit credit cards and aggravated identity theft.

Dennis Coster, 58, of White Hall, Md., was sentenced today to 12 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to deal in explosive materials and to create a false entry in a required record.

A federal court in Los Angeles has permanently barred Benjamin Aparicio from preparing federal tax returns for others.

After a two-week trial in federal court in Los Angeles, a jury found Christopher Iruke, 60; his wife, Connie Ikpoh, 49; and Aura Marroquin, 30, guilty of multiple charges.

The United States has reached agreement with the owners and a former operator of an inks and paint products manufacturing facility in Danvers, Mass., that exploded and burned in 2006 the day before Thanksgiving.

The Justice Department has opened a civil investigation into allegations of discriminatory policing by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) members based in the cities of Lancaster and Palmdale, Calif.

Five alleged members of the violent gang known as the East Side Los Guada Bloods (East Side Bloods) have been charged in an indictment returned yesterday in Phoenix with various racketeering and attempted murder charges.

A federal court in California has permanently barred Gwenn Wycoff and Frank Ozak from forming trusts for others.

A Hammond, Ind., man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., to 14 years in prison for operating an online business that sold counterfeit credit cards encoded with stolen account information.

Two Mobile, Ala., real estate investors and one real estate investment company have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids for the purchase of real estate at public foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama.

A federal court in Los Angeles has permanently barred Mario Placencia from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Two California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids and to commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

Eight Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in two separate conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

The Antitrust Division obtained extensive information from Google, Admeld and a wide range of market participants in connection with its merger investigation of the proposed transaction. After a thorough review of the evidence, the division concluded that the transaction is not likely to substantially lessen competition in the sale of display advertising.

A Mobile, Ala., real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama.

“The tragedy at Upper Big Branch will never be forgotten, and the families affected by it will never be made completely whole again. Today’s agreement represents the largest-ever resolution in a criminal investigation of a mine disaster and will ensure appropriate steps are taken to improve mine safety now and will fund research to enhance mine safety in the future,” said Attorney General Holder.

Walli Mujahidh, aka “Frederick Domingue, Jr.,” 32, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to murder officers and agents of the United States, conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Lisa Wright, 46, and Cathy Saffer, 52, of Pompano Beach, Fla., were charged today with a conspiracy to defraud homeowners and banks in a foreclosure rescue scheme.

Frederic Alan Gladle, 53, was charged on Dec. 9, 2011, in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles with one count of bankruptcy fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

The pastor of a now defunct Los Angeles church who owned and operated several fraudulent durable medical equipment (DME) supply companies was sentenced today to 180 months in prison for his role in a $14.2 million Medicare fraud scheme, the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

Carolyn Ann Vasquez, 47, was also ordered to pay $6.2 million in restitution by U.S. District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall of the Central District of California.

The Access to Justice Initiative today released Foreclosure Mediation: Emerging Research and Evaluation Practices, a report resulting from a March 7, 2011, workshop with dozens of foreclosure mediation program stakeholders and researchers.

The U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington announced today that they are closing the federal criminal civil rights investigation of a former Seattle Police Department Officer for the fatal shooting of the late Native American woodcarver John T. Williams, and that charges will not be filed.

A former CIA officer, John Kiriakou, was charged today with repeatedly disclosing classified information to journalists, including the name of a covert CIA officer and information revealing the role of another CIA employee in classified activities.

Eduard Aslanyan, 38, of Sherman Oaks, Calif., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall in the Central District of California.

The federal government and 49 state attorneys general today have reached a landmark $25 billion agreement with the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers to address mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure abuses.

Three Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

The settlement agreement with the nation’s five largest servicers announced today by Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice’s federal and state partners includes substantial financial compensation to homeowners who are servicemembers and establishes significant new protections for servicemembers in the future.

The co-owner of two Los Angeles-area health care companies was sentenced today to 96 months in prison for his conviction stemming from a nine-year scheme to defraud Medicare.